‘Ghosts’ Is The Most Heartwarming Sitcom You’ve Never Heard Of

Far be it from me to tell you how to live your life. But if you’re not watching Ghosts yet, you really should be.

This sweet US comedy series offers us a simple premise: young couple Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar) and Sam (Rose McIver) leave New York City after they inherit a sprawling house in the country, and basically: it’s haunted. Don’t worry though, this show is anything but scary. The ghosts are a gaggle of weirdos who died in that house over the centuries, and as they’re stuck with each other and can’t leave the estate, they’re essentially a bunch of reluctant housemates. (Relatable!)

When Sam has a concussion, she ends up being able to see and talk to the gang, leaving her as the go-between between them and the oblivious Jay. And that, you guys, is where the fun ensues, as each of these characters is funny and compelling enough to have their own spin-off.

The ghosts include Trevor (Asher Grodman), who — for reasons that remain undisclosed — is never wearing any pants, followed by a grown man in a Boy Scout costume Pete (Richie Morarity), ’60s hippie Flower (Sheila Carrasco), old-timey Jazz singer Alberta (Danielle Pinnock), and literal Viking Thorfinn (Devon Long).

In lesser hands, this American adaptation of the BBC series of the same name would have been a mess. For example, the episode where Jay spends most of his time possessed by Hetty — the 19th-century wife of a robber Barron, complete with ornate hand gestures and an old-world accent — could easily have failed.

But somehow, Ambudkar’s penchant for physical comedy allows him to pull it off. You feel genuine sadness when you realise that Hetty was from a generation of women who never had the chance to fulfil their dreams (she tries to escape to Paris while inhabiting Jay’s body), and each character brings genuine pathos to their role that never feels overwrought.

Early in the season, Pete expresses his love for the ’80s sitcom Newhart, praising a “gentle humour” that was “never at anyone’s expense and never mean”. The same could be said of Ghosts, a throwback to sort of old-fashioned sitcom that’s largely been lost amid the bedlam of prestige TV.

So why now dodge the True Crime this week? Snuggle up with Ghosts instead.

The first season of Ghosts (CBS) is now streaming on Paramount+.